


A New Dawn

by Miksykat



Series: Forgotten Kin Au [2]
Category: Hollow Knight (Video Games)
Genre: Embrace the Void Ending (Hollow Knight), also some slight dehumanization regarding thk, and i encourage you to laugh at her, don't worry i feel bad about it, my apologies B:((, radiance is a spiteful bitch™, she's also very much a dumbass, so for now it/its pronouns, thk deserves all the good things, thk deserves better honestly but we arent there yet plot wise
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-19
Updated: 2020-08-19
Packaged: 2021-03-06 08:35:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 715
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25966738
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Miksykat/pseuds/Miksykat
Summary: The Radiance performs one last act of spite, it backfires spectacularly, and The Hollow Knight gains the desire to sunbathe
Series: Forgotten Kin Au [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1884484
Comments: 2
Kudos: 82





	A New Dawn

**Author's Note:**

> this one was the idea that sparked the previous one, but i held back on writing it to iron it out a little more. also keep your eye on little details, I've sprinkled hints to something important for future work B;))

A higher being's domain was a peculiar thing. It was not owned by the higher being, nor were they owned by it, yet they existed as one. A godless realm could call out to a new godling at any moment and give them rule, but it could function just as well on its own without anyone to control it. A god could not abandon their realm to have no ruler, but it could be passed along onto anyone they chose. An unrepresented realm could not be claimed by any random being on a whim, but a represented one could be conquered by the ruling god's killer.

  
The Radiance knew this, just as any of Her fellows knew all that time ago. She knew that She was going to die, and this new god who had risen from the Void would claim the realm of dreams for Their own. She knew, and She _hated_ it. Her ancient enemy, given Form and Focus, claiming Her light for Themselves. It _infuriated_ Her. First Her land and people taken by the Pale Wyrm, then Her realm stolen by the Lord of Shades that the Wyrm's foolishness birthed.

  
She had fallen into such a spiteful existence, She knew, though She found Herself unable to regret it. She had refused Her given fate once before, and though She knew that She would die here no matter how She fought, She would not let Her realm be taken by the Void. Her killer would not have the satisfaction.

  
She needed to pass it on, to someone the Void would not tear it from, to someone that would not hold it long before fading themselves and leaving it impossible to claim until one day a new little god found the essence of light and dream whispering their name like the sweetest melody.

  
She looked to the Hollow one, dying as She was without Her rage to force it to live and suffer. It had contained the core of Her, had withstood all She'd thrown at it, if only barely. She knew the Shade Lord would not dare to harm Their _darling sibling_ , and it had not much longer in this world. So She gave it Her realm in Her dying breath, and if not for the pain She would have looked upon the Lord of Shades and _laughed_.

________

  
In the waking world, far above, in the crumbling Temple of the Black Egg, The Hollow Knight lay dying. It felt Her dying along with it, Her burning light fading from the mind it was never supposed to have. With her death, the seals of binding faded and it had fallen with its chains. It knew it had had no part in Her death, but with the goddess fading it no longer had purpose. It did not fight the end coming to claim it. It was a broken tool with no use, best discarded.

  
Suddenly, for one moment of what it’d assume to be madness, The Hollow Knight felt sunlight on its carapace, warm and soothing instead of screaming and burning. Something compelled it to stand with the last of its strength, grip its nail as a support, and limp its way out of the temple.

  
It could not say what had drawn it out, but when it saw Sister, the little spiderling from memories long passed, standing in the path of what would soon be a tidal wave of the temple's void, it forgot to question. It simply leapt toward Sister as the Black Egg came undone, and shielded her with its body as best it could.

________

  
Weeks later, long after the Lord of Shades had reclaimed Their mortal shell and the Daughter of Hallownest had dragged a weakened Hollow Knight to a spring of soul to recover, after the pale siblings had reunited and dragged themselves from the tunnels of the kingdom to the small town above, after they had claimed a dusty home on the town's border, the Hollow Knight sat at the bench to watch another sunrise in the kingdom finally free from stasis and plague.

  
And from their doorstep, Hornet and Ghost watch their sibling, still healing from scorched shell and sun blinded eye, and wonder how they can still find comfort in the shining light of dawn.

**Author's Note:**

> radiance: haha bitch try taking my realm now your sibling's got it and is taking ownership with them to the grave lol  
> thk: **doesn't die specifically because of the boost in strength the dream realm gave them**  
> radiance: **surprised pikachu face but angry**
> 
> originally ghost was going to claim the dream realm, but in my opinion that one, while fun, is a bit overdone. then i considered giving it to grimmchild, but that seemed a tad too hectic and again, it's been done. i was tempted to make the dream realm just,, not relevant, but after all the shit in canon ((and all my ideas for what to do with it)) it seemed like a waste of potential to throw it out. so i had been trying to figure out what to do with the dream realm in this au for a while, and one night I'm having trouble sleeping and i wake up and my brain says "lol what if hollow got the dream realm" and i was like hold on you may be onto something here, and thus i decided radiance is a spiteful idiot and karma bites all her plans in the ass as it should


End file.
